Landscape with Gentle Peaks

浅峰山水図

1767

Kan Tenju 韓天寿

(Japanese, 1727–1795)

Culture

Japan, Edo period (1615–1868)

Medium

hanging scroll; ink and light color on paper

Measurements

Painting only: 133.2 x 45.2 cm (52 7/16 x 17 13/16 in.); Including mounting: 216 x 67.7 cm (85 1/16 x 26 5/8 in.)

Credit Line

Andrew R. and Martha Holden Jennings Fund 1978.7

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Location

235A Japanese

Did You Know?

This painting combines image and calligraphy, connected by skillful brushwork.

Description

A figure sits in a retreat tucked into the mountains near a waterfall. The painter, Kan Tenju, was best known as a calligrapher and seal carver. Of Korean heritage, he was a patron of artist Ike Taiga (池大雅) (1723–1776), and a cousin of Taiga’s student Aoki Shukuya (青木夙夜) (died 1802). His Chinese-style poem reads as follows:

Smoky mist in the mountain reflects light after the rain,
Sunlight passes through the clouds to cast shadows of the trees,
Alone in the sunset, I read a well-worn book.